Eugene O'Hanigan is the cousin of former Internal Affairs Bureau Captain Ed Tucker, who was forced to assist a sex trafficking ring within the Catholic Church.
Background[]
Eugene was very close to his cousin Ed but they drifted apart when Ed became a cop and Eugene a priest.
History[]
O'Hanigan was first seen when Tucker approached him, needing information on a case that the Special Victims Unit was working on. He refused to help, claiming confessional privilege. Later, O'Hanigan and Tucker into a fight with Lieutenant Benson following the death of one of the ring's victims. (SVU: "Manhattan Transfer")
In the course of the investigation, the SVU learned that O'Hanigan owned two apartments, even though a man named Lance Woodstone was residing in one of them. After they questioned Lance and his attorney girlfriend, they found out Eugene was embezzling money from the church. The detectives also learned that someone else knew of this. As a result, Eugene was brought in for questioning after being caught with Lance. As they questioned him, they approached Monsignor Patrick Mulregan about it, and he framed him for his involvement with the ring. Later, Detective Carisi approached O'Hanigan after the brass instructed the SVU to drop the case and convinced him to point them to the direction of buried files regarding trafficked girls. He ended up testifying against Mulregan, but was afterwards imprisoned for embezzlement. (SVU: "Unholiest Alliance")